Where Are We Going?

To me, a presidential election year resembles a long drive on a very, very bumpy highway with confusing road signs. 

For the next three months, facts will be obscured and outlandish memes will proliferate on social media. Before you share anything, please look it up first on any of the fact-checking sites such as http://www.politifact.com, http://www.factcheck.org, or http://www.snopes.com.

Thanks.

Then listen to some pleasant music and drive home as safely as you can.

Guest Post: MY HEART WEEPS by Pamela S. Thibodeau

My guest today is the award-winning author, Pamela S. Thibodeaux, Co-Founder and a lifetime member of Bayou Writers Group in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Multi-published in romantic fiction as well as creative non-fiction, her writing has been tagged as, “Inspirational with an Edge!” ™ and reviewed as “steamier and grittier than the typical Christian novel without decreasing the message.” Sign up to receive Pam’s newsletter and get a FREE short story! 

 

Pamela's newest  release is MY HEART WEEPS. The story tells of Melena Rhyker who is devastated by her husband's death. Relief comes in the form of an artist's retreat at the Crossed Penn ranch in Utopia, TX. She rediscovers a forgotten dream as her artistic talent flourishes into that of a gallery-worthy artist. Will she have the courage to follow the path she was destined to travel?

Garrett Saunders has been on the run most of his life. Abused and abandoned as a child, he escapes the clutches of a past filled with pain and shame, and hides from his calling as a Native American healer. His years as a CIA agent aid in overcoming his childhood and honing his talent and skill as a fine art photographer. 

 

Follow their journey as two people who come from totally different backgrounds, but share gifts of gigantic proportions, find meaning and purpose in the Texas Hill Country.

 

And now for an excerpt!

Within moments after Anne left, Melena came in.

“Anne shouldn’t have bothered you.”

“Anne didn’t send me.”

“So why are you here?”

Had she not seen the devastation in his eyes and on his face earlier, Melena would have taken offense at his demeanor. “I wanted to see if you’re all right.”

“I’m not sure how I am right now.”

Concerned at the defeat in his tone, Melena placed her hand on his shoulder. “I know this isn’t the time or place to discuss what happened, but I hate to think of you up here all alone. I need to get back down to the show. Why don’t you come with me?”

“I’m sure my career is over.”

“I wouldn’t say that. There are more people down there who appreciate your work and are much more supportive of the artist they’ve come to know and love—despite never seeing you—than some strange man hell bent on starting a scene.”

“What about your children?”

“My children are among them.”

He turned to her then and her stomach clenched at the depth of shame, anger and sorrow in his expressive eyes. He removed her hand from his shoulder, closed the distance between them with a single step, and cradled her face in his hands. Melena leaned into him and lifted her face, anticipating his kiss. His lips trembled against hers, a soft brush of mouth on mouth as his hands trailed down her neck and shoulders then around her back to embrace her more fully.

Melena’s hands glided up his arms and around his neck, fingers dipped into the dark depths of thick hair caressing his collar, then eased back as he ended the kiss in slow degrees. He buried his face in her hair. A shudder shook his entire frame.

“Thank you.”

The ache in his voice fisted around her heart. Melena took a step back, held his hand in hers and together they went downstairs.

My Heart Weeps is on sale for a limited time @ 99cents and FREE on Kindle Unlimited!

Purchase Link: https://bit.ly/MyHeartWeeps

Links:

Website address: http://www.pamelathibodeaux.com

Blog: http://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com

Newsletter: http://bit.ly/psthibnewsletter

 

Face Book: http://facebook.com/pamelasthibodeaux

https://www.facebook.com/pamelasthibodeauxauthor

 

Twitter: http://twitter.com/psthib @psthib

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/pamelasthibodea/

Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1jUVcdU

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/pamela-s-thibodeaux

Instagram: https://instagram.com/pamelasthibodeauxauthor

Pam is giving away 1 Ebook, 1 Autographed Print Book, 1 Audio Book, a $15 Amazon Gift Card, a 1-month Audible membership and a SURPRISE Giftpack to 6 lucky winners! Names will be collected throughout the tour which ends Sept. 30th. Winners will be notified, and prizes awarded by October 10th. (1 prize per person)

 

Blog Tour Dates/Stops: 

8/25 Jana Richards’ Romance Story Board Blog 

8/27 Beverly Bateman’s BLOG 

9/1 Valarie Goree’s Facebook Page 

9/5 D. V. Stone’s Campfire Blog  

9/9 Jacqueline Seewald’s BLOG 

9/11 Linda Rondeau’s Snark & Sensibility Blog 

9/14 Patricia Kioyno’s Four Foxes, One Hound Blog 

9/18 Diane Burton’s BLOG 

9/22 Alicia Dean’s BLOG 

9/25 Jeny Hickman’s BLOG 

9/30 Linda Nightingale’s Author…Musings Blog 

 

For more information : https://southernwritersmagazine.blogspot.com/

 

 

What About Music In a Novel?

Photo by stevepb on Pixabay

I learned the words to many songs when I was young. My mother sang all the time--mostly the songs of her generation, but some even older than that. I took piano lessons for a short time, paid for with my babysitting money. My middle sister took guitar lessons, so I learned a bit about the guitar as well. I sang in the madrigal choir in college. For many years, I sang and played an accompaniment with the guitar in the folk choir at church. Then I married a man whose main hobby was music. Our daughters took piano lessons for years--until they went to college.

While I am not an accomplished pianist or guitarist, I have memorized the lyrics to a gazillion songs from the past, though I don't know much about current popular music. However, sometimes when I'm strolling through a store, I might hear a nice tune playing through the speakers as I load my cart with groceries. Then I'll go and search for it. If it really touches me, I'll buy the sheet music.

Surrounded by an abundance of musical scores, I have sometimes included the mention of a number of songs in the books I write. In The Cowboy's Miracle, I used several ancient western ballads. In my newest release, Patriot's Courage, I referenced "Amazing Grace," one of my favorite hymns. It was first published in 1779 by John Newton. (There's an interesting conversion story on John Newton that you can find at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazing_Grace)

I am well aware that a writer must be careful about using lyrics or songs in their stories and not only because it is difficult to secure the copyrights on the songs. Using song titles often dates the story and since songs go out of fashion quickly, future readers may never have heard of the song you are referencing in your book. See Jason Sanford's blog post: http://www.jasonsanford.com/blog/2015/8/why-writers-should-rarely-name-songs-in-their-fiction

Writer's Digest has a very succinct post about using song lyrics: https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/questions-and-quandaries/legal-questions/can-i-use-song-lyrics-in-my-manuscript  Jane Friedman has a longer and more detailed guide: https://www.janefriedman.com/permissions-and-fair-use/

In Clear As Ice, I was tempted to use the titles from a playlist for EMTs and paramedics. Instead, I made vague references to the heavy beat of the songs and the way the protagonist reacts to the music. That's the safe way. 

PATRIOT'S COURAGE Available for Pre-Order Now!

The long awaited sequel to Patriot's Heart and Patriot's Pride will be released soon, but you can pre-order it now and discover what the McGowans did with the promissory note for the one hundred acres received for service in the War for Independence. 

Here's the blurb:

In retaliation for his brother's death, Ryan McGowan vows to kill every Indian in Ohio territory. When his captain assigns him to teach English to a woman found sobbing over a dead warrior, he resents the task. But the woman melts away his vengeance. He begins to understand the way to peace is through forgiveness. Then he learns the woman carries the child of her Indian husband in her womb.

Màxkchulëns, a white woman adopted by the Lenape at the age of four, is confined at the fort and longs to return to her people. Though Ryan leads her to recall part of the faith her biological parents held dear, she struggles to understand it and the power of grace. 

Can she rely on that grace in desperate times? And will faith protect her unborn child as well?

Order PATRIOT'S COURAGE now and enjoy another exciting adventure in our country's early years.